Under the Cover of Darkness
by The Yayacat
Summary: '"Well, I was thinking we might go see a movie together, just the two of us." "T-The two of us, huh?" "Yeah! Wouldn't it be fun?" Liz leaned closer. "We could do some… coupley things." Sinon's cheeks turned crimson. Shino/Rika (Lisbeth/Sinon)


The day was going normally enough for Shino "Sinon" Asada. After an hour of training for the Bullet of Bullets tournament, going for a half-mile jog, and playing ALfhiem Online with her friends, she found herself at the end of the day with a cold glass of water at Agil's virtual bar with the one and only Rika "Lisbeth" Shinozaki.

The two had enjoyed a light amount of discussion together, with everyone else off doing there own thing around the bar. Lisbeth sighed, shaking her empty mug of beer lightly. "It's not fair, Sinon. I've gone through more than most people will in a lifetime, had to live with the fact I could be brutally killed by some monster or murdered by some crazed lunatic - and I'm still too young to drink real beer."

Sinon rolled her eyes before taking a sip of her own water. ' _What on earth does enduring the SAO Incident have to do with consuming alcohol?'_

Lisbeth sighed again before pushing the empty beer mug away, but continued to stare longingly at it. "You think Asuna's drunk any?"

Sinon finished her water in one fell gulp and set her own glass down next to the mug. "I've no idea."

The pink-haired blacksmith continued. "I mean, she's had to have had a little taste or something at some point, right? Maybe all those suitors get to her and she just has one small drink, eh?"

Sinon sighed, "If you're so curious, why don't you just ask her?"

"I mean… I certainly wouldn't blame her."

The blue-haired archer could only rub her temples in frustration. She was thankful Lisbeth couldn't actually drink yet. There was no telling the stuff she'd ramble on about under the influence. ...though she had to wonder if the alcohol in ALfhiem Online WAS as safe as everyone thought.

She was about to go and ask Agil or Kirito, when she heard Liz speak up again. "Say, Shi-Shi."

Sinon tried to remain as dignified as she could through her bright red cheeks, "H-hey, I thought we talked about the nickname, thing…"

"I know, but it's fun to say," Lisbeth quietly explained, glancing away almost thoughtfully. "Anyway, I was thinking. We got an extra day off this week, right?"

"Mmhm. Marine Day, unless I'm mistaken. What about it?"

"Well… I was thinking we might go and see a movie together. Just the two of us."

"Th-the two of us, huh?"

"Yeah!" Lisbeth's tone lightened, "Wouldn't it be fun?" She leaned in closer, "Plus, it'd be dark and stuff, so if we wanted to, we could do some...coupley things."

Sinon's cheeks turned crimson, but her expression remained firm, "Those 'coupley things' had better not involve my breasts."

Lisbeth's grin turned a more sly shade, "Well, hadn't thought about that 'til you brought it up, but if you want to..."

"Hmph," was all Sinon bothered to reply with.

"Oh c'mon, I'm just kidding," Lisbeth said, tapping Sinon's back playfully.

She shot a disapproving glare at Lisbeth. THAT wasn't even worth a verbal response.

Liz sighed, "Boy you're a tough customer. I guess I'll just have to sweeten the deal."

"I highly doubt anything you'd offer me could persuade me to join you on such an endeavor."

XOXO

Shino looked about her surroundings at the movie theater, clutching the sack in her hand tightly. Somehow a combination of Liz's cute freckles, a smile that could sell an FPS to a grandmother, and the promise of a drink AND popcorn, had managed to persuade her on their first "official" date.

It was one of the rare occurrences she'd actually had trouble deciding on what to wear. She eventually opted for a pink tank-top beneath her black jacket, dark blue pants, and, of all things, _heels_. It wasn't that she wanted to impress Rika or anything. She just wanted to try to at least look a little nicer for the theater. ...even if it was going to be dark.

She'd managed to convince Liz to go earlier in the morning for a matinee showing, instead of a much more expensive evening showing. Well, that was _part_ of her reasoning, anyway. The other part was that there were a lot fewer people around. Only just in case, though.

"Whooooah! Hey there, cutie! I'm amazed those glasses aren't broken after you fell from Heaven."

A lot fewer, and yet even that was still way too many.

The flirt was a young man in his mid-teens with scruffy patches of whiskers covering parts of his face and a poor jacket that had lost 3/4ths of the right sleeve in some deluded attempt to look "cool" and "edgy" worn sloppily on his shoulders. Shino couldn't help but wonder if he was the same boy who'd used a similar "pick up line" on her in GGO a week or two ago.

Unfortunately, she didn't have Hecate to help bail her out this time, and opted just to ignore him.

As fate would have it, though, that didn't work. The boy crept closer, "Yeah, I'm really into that 'nerdy angel' look you've got. Downright _sexy_."

A shiver went up Shino's spine, resulting in a small grunt escaping her lips. ' _I'd appreciate it if you'd leave. If my girlfriend sees you, I can't promise you'd leave with all of your limbs intact.'_ was what she desperately wanted to tell the creep. But there was no way she could even manage to squeak that out. And there was no way it'd be substantiated.

"Uhh, excuse me?" A familiar voice called out.

A wave of relief washed over Shino as Rika approached. She wasn't sure if it was providence or just dumb luck, but a small sigh escaped her lips.

"I'd prefer it if you kept your hands _off_ my cousin. Alright? I don't wanna have to go to jail _again_ for getting rid of a creep..."

A hurried "Yes ma'am" and a squeak were the only noises that Shino heard that boy utter as she slithered off into the parking lot.

"Thanks…" Shino said, sighing.

"No problem. Are you gonna be OK?" Rika had her usual smile, but her eyes were filled with concern. She had to admit, it was kind of sweet. Not that she'd _tell_ her that, though.

She nodded, "Yeah, I'm fine. Just a bit shaken up, I guess."

Rika nodded, "I betcha a movie and some popcorn will help though, right?"

"I...I guess, yeah." Shino nodded.

"Great! So, uh, what movie do you wanna watch?"

Shino raised an eyebrow. "Did you have any one in particular in mind?"

"I was gonna leave it up to you. One of us needs to be super polite, right?"

She decided to ignore her as she glanced over the recent-release posters plastered on the front of the building. "Hmm, how about…"

XOXO

"Sooo, _this_ is the kind of stuff you're into, huh?" Rika cheekily whispered to Shino as the trailers played.

Shino could feel her cheeks burning as she calmly explained, "It's only because kids movies don't have guns, alright?"

As she'd expected the theater was just as cold as always, only made colder by the cola she was drinking. She usually didn't drink soda, but Rika had insisted that she wouldn't pay for something you could get out of a water fountain for free. Except for the feeling that her teeth were rotting away by the second, it didn't taste _too_ terrible.

The two had found a spot in the corner against back wall, Shino opting for it in case Rika tried any funny business. If she was going to put up with her girlfriend's antics, then she'd at least make sure no one could see them. She usually preferred sitting closer to the exit, but death by crazed gunman sounded miles better than death by embarrassment.

"Man, it's cold in here," Rika noted as the last trailer began, "Last time I go to a movie in shorts."

Without so much as a glance her way, Shino took the sack that had been in the seat next to her and set it at her neighbor's feet. "Try that."

It wasn't long before Rika had covered herself with the sack's contents: a thin green blanket. "Aww, thanks, Shi-Shi. You think of everything." She took a deep breath, "Mmm… Even smells like you, too."

Shino grimaced as she could feel her cheeks light up again. ' _Doesn't this girl have an 'off' switch?'_

Thankfully, it seemed like someone had flipped it "off" once the movie got started. The movie played out enjoyably enough. It was an American kids' film, which was a nice change of pace, and the 3D animation was enjoyable. The colors were engaging, the recurring background music catchy.

They were only about twenty minutes in, however, when Shino felt something warm suddenly touch her hand. She let out a small gasp, and contracted away from whatever it was that touched her hand. Unfortunately in her sudden movement, her arm hit the drink in the cupholder, and knocked a portion of its contents onto her jacket.

The shock of the sound and the cold, wet feeling on her hand resulted in a sharp gasp escaping her lips.

Rika had already reacted, "You okay?"

Shino gave a small grunt, "Yeah… I think so. Felt like something touched my hand, and I guess I bumped my drink."

Rika rubbed the back of her head, "Heh, sorry about that. I guess I was just caught up in the moment."

' _She was trying to hold hands?'_ Shino cleared her throat, hoping it might remove any blushing, "It just surprised me, is all, what with darkness and everything. At least ask me next time."

Rika nodded, and happened to glance at the upset cup, "Did it spill?"

"Yeah, though it's only some. On my jacket, mostly."

"Oh okay. Just give me your jacket and I'll go dry it for ya."

Shino swallowed, ' _If I give her my jacket, she'll see the pink tank-top!'_ She shook her head, "N-no, I'll go and do it." ' _What on earth possessed me to wear this thing?'_

However, Rika was pretty insistent, "It's no problem, Shi-Shi. I'll be back before you could say 'Bullet of Bullets'."

"Please, Rika, I can handle-"

Before Shino could utter another word, in two swift motions, Rika had completely undone the zipper to her jacket, and almost effortlessly slipped it off both arms. Then, she just as quickly bolted off towards the exit.

If Shino hadn't been boiling over from rage… she might have been impressed by her girlfriend's quick maneuvering.

However, she was a woman of great determination. ' _Rggh! She can be as bad as Kazuto!'_ In a small act of payback, she swiped the blanket from Rika's seat back and slipped it over her entire body, including her head. If she was going to pull stunts like that, then she could _enjoy_ the cold. ' _Honestly, you're supposed to ask before you do stuff like that. She was probably just trying to catch a peek or something else dirty.'_

As luck would have it, the blanket was thin enough that she could still make out what was being shown on the screen.

After a few moments of sulking, another scene going by in the film, Shino thought, ' _Still, it was nice of her to offer, I guess…'_

"Miss me?" Rika was now back in her seat, but now the cover was completely covering her, as well, converting Shino's blanket into some make-shift tent for the two girls.

' _Figures she shows up when I'm not as mad.'_

Rika handed the black jacket back to Shino, "Here ya go! It's still a bit damp, but it should be better now."

"Th-thanks…" Shino said.

"No problem." A sly grin spread across her lips, "Kinda glad it happened, though. You look really good in pink."

Shino's eyes widened, and her cheeks reddened, "N-no! Don't be ridiculous. I-it was all I had clean!"

The sly grin remained on the freckled-girl's face, "Mmhm. And were those heels the only shoes you had clean?"

Shino's face grew even redder, "Th-they were a gift from m-my grandfather. I-I thought it'd be a shame if I never wore them at least once."

"Uh-huh. Sure…" Rika's gaze thankfully went from her to viewing the movie through the blanket's stitching, and, with a sigh, Shino followed suit.

They watched the movie in silence, as the main heroine was confessing her love to the male lead. Following a touching moment, Rika whispered, "Hey, Shi-Shi?"

"Mmhm?" was all she felt like responding with.

Rika was silent for a few moments before she finally asked. "Is it alright if I hold your hand?"

Shino swallowed. ' _We're under the blanket… and it's dark, so it's not like anyone will see you.'_ Without a word, she placed her hand on top of Rika's open palm. A small tingling sensation went through her as Rika's fingers interlocked with her own. It wasn't like when you shook hands with someone. This was… different.

She could feel Rika's thumb gently stroking the top of her hand. A small smile came across her lips, "This is gonna sound really corny... but I've forgotten how warm a hand can be…"

' _She's not wrong; it DOES sound corny.'_ She thought, though she couldn't bring herself to say it. ' _She's not wrong about the warmth, though.'_

After a couple more strokes, Rika began to gently lift Shino's hand. ' _What is she doing?'_ She thought, her heart beginning to race. The destination was soon made clear.

Shino felt Rika's lips press gently against the top of her hand.

Normally, she would have pulled back in an instant and use her other hand to plant a slap on any moron crazy enough to do that. ...and yet that wasn't even remotely near Shino's mind.

Rika wasn't done yet, though. After placing another kiss by her thumb, she moved up to kiss her wrist. Then, much to Shino's surprise, she released her hold on her hand, and moved up to kiss her forearm. Shino's face was red hot. This was the warmest she'd ever been in the theater, that was for sure. Rika placed another kiss on her upper arm. ' _What's she gonna do when she gets past my arm…?'_ She pondered. Whatever she did, she hoped she wouldn't stop.

After one last kiss on her shoulder, Rika opened her eyes and her gaze met with Shino's. Rika was so close she could feel her breath on her cheek. "Hey, Shi-Shi?" She asked, breathing heavily.

"Y-yeah?" Shino found it was hard to breathe herself.

Rika inched in closer, "I've never done this before, so let me know if I mess up… Okay?"

"Mmhm," Shino nodded slightly, "Me too… I've never-"

In another swift maneuver, Rika Shinozaki had moved in.

' _C-couldn't she have waited..?'_ Shino thought for a few, brief moments. But that, all of her troubles from earlier, and any fear of being discovered were all but dissolved by the kiss. Rika's lips were pressed tightly to her own. She squeezed both of Shino's arms tightly, and a small groan emerged from Shino's lips.

However long the kiss lasted, it wasn't nearly long enough. Eventually, Rika broke it off, and the two girls gasped for air. "How was that?" Rika asked through various pants.

"Well… I'd appreciate it if you let me finish my sentences next time." Shino managed through her own labored breathing.

Rika's smile widened, "Heh, got it. I'll keep it in mind for next time."

The girl's smile must have been contagious, as Shino couldn't keep herself from a small smile. She rested her hand in Rika's once again, interlocking their fingers and not letting go until the credits had finished rolling.


End file.
